Carterton ( mi, Taratahi) is a small town in the

Wellington Region Greater Wellington, also known as the Wellington Region (Māori: ''Te Upoko o te Ika''), is a non-unitary region of New Zealand that occupies the southernmost part of the North Island. The region covers an area of , and has a population of T ...

of New Zealand and the seat of the Carterton District (a territorial authority or local government district). It lies in a farming area of the

Wairarapa The Wairarapa (; ), a geographical region of New Zealand, lies in the south-eastern corner of the North Island, east of metropolitan Wellington and south-west of the Hawke's Bay Region. It is lightly populated, having several rural service ...

in New Zealand's

North Island The North Island, also officially named Te Ika-a-Māui, is one of the two main islands of New Zealand, separated from the larger but much less populous South Island by the Cook Strait. The island's area is , making it the world's 14th-largest ...

. It is located southwest of

Masterton Masterton ( mi, Whakaoriori), a large town in the Greater Wellington Region of New Zealand, operates as the seat of the Masterton District (a territorial authority or local-government district). It is the largest town in the Wairarapa, a r ...

and northeast of

Wellington Wellington ( mi, Te Whanganui-a-Tara or ) is the capital city of New Zealand. It is located at the south-western tip of the North Island, between Cook Strait and the Remutaka Range. Wellington is the second-largest city in New Zealand by me ...

. The town has a population of ), out of a total district population of . Carterton was founded in 1857. Originally known as ''Three Mile Bush'', it served as housing for workers building the road between Wellington and Masterton. It was later renamed after Charles Carter, who was in charge of the building of the Black Bridge over the

Waiohine River The Waiohine River is a river of the Greater Wellington Region of New Zealand's North Island. At first it flows generally south from its origins in the Tararua Range west of Otaki. It turns south-east once it reaches the plain where it passes ...

south of the town. The town describes itself as New Zealand's

daffodil ''Narcissus'' is a genus of predominantly spring flowering perennial plants of the amaryllis family, Amaryllidaceae. Various common names including daffodil,The word "daffodil" is also applied to related genera such as ''Sternbergia'', ''Ism ...

capital, holding a Daffodil Festival each year on the second Sunday in September, with the main event taking place at Middle Run along Gladstone Road.

History

Carterton was the first place in the world to elect a transgender mayor,

Georgina Beyer Georgina Beyer (born November 1957) is a New Zealand politician and former Labour Party Member of Parliament. In 1995 she was elected mayor of Carterton, making her the world's first openly transgender mayor. In 2005 she became the world's ...

. Beyer went on to set another world's first record, becoming the MP for

in 1999. On 7 January 2012, a hot air balloon crashed just north of the town, killing eleven people and making headlines around the world. The balloon came into contact with a high-voltage power line supplying the town, resulting in the balloon catching fire and the town losing power briefly. In 1956, along with

, Carterton became the joint first town in New Zealand to use the 111 Emergency Number.

Demographics

Carterton

Carterton covers and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km². Carterton had a population of 5,340 at the

2018 New Zealand census Eighteen or 18 may refer to: * 18 (number), the natural number following 17 and preceding 19 * one of the years 18 BC, AD 18, 1918, 2018 Film, television and entertainment * ''18'' (film), a 1993 Taiwanese experimental film based on the sho ...

, an increase of 600 people (12.7%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 1,203 people (29.1%) since the

2006 census 6 (six) is the natural number following 5 and preceding 7. It is a composite number and the smallest perfect number. In mathematics Six is the smallest positive integer which is neither a square number nor a prime number; it is the second small ...

. There were 2,214 households. There were 2,547 males and 2,793 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.91 males per female, with 957 people (17.9%) aged under 15 years, 720 (13.5%) aged 15 to 29, 2,196 (41.1%) aged 30 to 64, and 1,470 (27.5%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 89.4% European/Pākehā, 15.4% Māori, 2.1% Pacific peoples, 3.1% Asian, and 1.4% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. The percentage of people born overseas was 16.5, compared with 27.1% nationally. Although some people objected to giving their religion, 51.9% had no religion, 35.3% were Christian, 0.7% were Hindu, 0.2% were Muslim, 0.5% were Buddhist and 2.7% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 666 (15.2%) people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 1,110 (25.3%) people had no formal qualifications. 501 people (11.4%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 1,854 (42.3%) people were employed full-time, 645 (14.7%) were part-time, and 153 (3.5%) were unemployed.

Carterton District

Carterton District covers and had an estimated population of as of with a population density of people per km². Carterton District had a population of 9,198 at the

, an increase of 963 people (11.7%) since the 2013 census, and an increase of 2,097 people (29.5%) since the

. There were 3,645 households. There were 4,524 males and 4,674 females, giving a sex ratio of 0.97 males per female. The median age was 46.4 years (compared with 37.4 years nationally), with 1,740 people (18.9%) aged under 15 years, 1,281 (13.9%) aged 15 to 29, 4,113 (44.7%) aged 30 to 64, and 2,064 (22.4%) aged 65 or older. Ethnicities were 91.4% European/Pākehā, 13.4% Māori, 1.8% Pacific peoples, 2.2% Asian, and 1.9% other ethnicities. People may identify with more than one ethnicity. The percentage of people born overseas was 16.6, compared with 27.1% nationally. Although some people objected to giving their religion, 53.1% had no religion, 35.5% were Christian, 0.5% were Hindu, 0.1% were Muslim, 0.4% were Buddhist and 2.2% had other religions. Of those at least 15 years old, 1,350 (18.1%) people had a bachelor or higher degree, and 1,620 (21.7%) people had no formal qualifications. The median income was $29,800, compared with $31,800 nationally. 1,092 people (14.6%) earned over $70,000 compared to 17.2% nationally. The employment status of those at least 15 was that 3,492 (46.8%) people were employed full-time, 1,242 (16.7%) were part-time, and 240 (3.2%) were unemployed.

Landmarks

Carterton's town clock is located on High Street next to the post office. The existing tower was put into operation in September 1962, replacing the original clock tower atop the post office that was damaged in the 24 June 1942 Wairarapa earthquake. The Bank of New South Wales, showing confidence in Carterton, built a beautifully ornate bank building on the corner of Park Road and High Street North in 1912. This building is listed in the historic buildings list found in the Wairarapa Combined District Plan. In 1982, the Bank of New South Wales became Westpac and continued to occupy the building until a devastating earthquake in Christchurch (6.3 on the Richter scale) severely damaged many unreinforced masonry buildings in February 2011. After an unfavourable engineers' assessment the bank shifted out of the building approximately 150 metres south in High Street North. The building underwent substantial seismic strengthening and re-opened as the Carterton Free Presbyterian Church in July 2017. Carterton Railway Station 01

Historic

Carterton railway station Carterton railway station is a suburban railway station serving Carterton, New Zealand. The station is located on the Wairarapa Line, north of and south of . The Wairarapa Connection serves the station several times daily with services ...

is located west of the town centre off Belvedere Road. The station building at the station is original, having been built when the railway opened in 1880, and has accepted passenger services ever since. It is currently leased from KiwiRail Network by the

Wairarapa Railway Restoration Society The Wairarapa Railway Restoration Society is a railway heritage and preservation community group in the town of Carterton, in the Carterton District of Wairarapa on New Zealand's lower North Island. The society has leased the Carterton railway ...

. The Carterton District library on Holloway Street is New Zealand's oldest purpose-built library that is still in use as a library today. The Carterton Events Centre is also on Holloway Street. Opened in October 2011, this state-of-the-art, multi-purpose community facility is available for community and commercial use. Centrally located in the Wairarapa region, the Centre provides modern, flexible, spaces for all manner of events, shows, exhibitions, meetings and community gatherings. Interconnection of spaces throughout the Centre allows for separation and opening up of spaces to cater for different needs. The Events Centre belongs to the Carterton community, through the Carterton District Council. Carterton's Memorial Square is on the corner of High Street and Park Road and holds Carterton's World War One memorial, positioned centrally. The red granite pillar, apparently broken off at the top, symbolising the lives cut short by the war. The memorial was unveiled on 13 February 1921 by Minister of Internal Affairs George Anderson. Since the 1930s Memorial Square has been administered under an act of parliament �
the Carterton and District Memorial Square Act (1932)
On Sundays from 22 February 2015, the Square began to host Carterton Farmers' Market. This weekly produce and craft event was born of the 2014 Place Making Carterton project, initiated by the Carterton District Business (Inc) group and Carterton District Council. Located 10 minutes from the Square is Stonehenge Aotearoa, built by members of The Phoenix Astronomy Society, it is a modern adaptation (opened in 2005) of the

Stonehenge Stonehenge is a prehistoric monument on Salisbury Plain in Wiltshire, England, west of Amesbury. It consists of an outer ring of vertical sarsen standing stones, each around high, wide, and weighing around 25 tons, topped by connectin ...

ruins on the

Salisbury Plain Salisbury Plain is a chalk plateau in the south western part of central southern England covering . It is part of a system of chalk downlands throughout eastern and southern England formed by the rocks of the Chalk Group and largely lies wi ...

of England.

Education

Carterton has three primary schools: * Carterton School, a state full primary (Year 1–8) school with a roll of students as of The school opened in 1861. * South End School, a state full primary (Year 1–8) school with a roll of students as of The school opened in 1962. * St Mary's School, a state-integrated Catholic full primary (Year 1–8) school with a roll of students as of The school opened in 1917 and integrated into the state education system in the early 1980s. Ponatahi Christian School a state-integrated composite (Year 1–13) Christian school, is also located in Carterton. It has a roll of students as of It was founded as a private school in 1978 and was originally sited at Ponatahi, southwest of Carterton. The school moved to its current site over the 1996–97 summer holidays, and integrated into the state education system in April 1998. There are no state secondary schools in Carterton. The nearest secondary schools are

Kuranui College Kuranui College is a State school, state Mixed-sex education, co-educational secondary school for the South Wairarapa located in Greytown, New Zealand. The college opened in February 1960 to replace the four district high schools in Greytown, F ...

, 10 km away in Greytown, and

Wairarapa College Wairarapa College is a state coeducational secondary school located in Masterton, New Zealand. The college first opened in 1938, following the merger of Wairarapa High School with the Masterton Technical School. Serving Years 9 to 13, the college ...

and

Makoura College Makoura College (spelled Makora College prior to 1990) is a state co-educational secondary school located in Masterton, New Zealand. The school opened in 1968 as the town's second state secondary school, alongside Wairarapa College. Serving Y ...

14 km and 15 km away respectively in Masterton.

Transport

Roads

The main street through Carterton is High Street - split on either side of Holloway Street into High Street North and High Street South. Other main streets include Park Road, Belvedere Road, Brooklyn Road, Pembroke Street and Holloway Street (which all run approximately east–west) and Lincoln Road (which runs approximately north–south). Other notable streets include Costley Street, Kenwyn Drive and Frederick Street. Carterton District is a rapidly expanding area which, according to inter-census dates (i.e. between 2006 and 2013) is the fastest growing local government area in the North Island with respect to population. A number of new subdivisions have assisted in this expansion such as Hartley Avenue, Routhan Way, Daffodil Grove, Armstrong Avenue, Tararua Crescent, Carrington Drive and Mill Grove. Carterton is served by State Highway 2, the main highway between Wellington and Masterton. The highway runs the length of High Street. Carterton is served by Metlink bus route 200, which connects Carterton with Masterton, Greytown, Featherston and

Martinborough Martinborough ( mi, Wharekaka) is a town in the South Wairarapa District, in the Wellington region of New Zealand. It is 65 kilometres east of Wellington and 35 kilometres south-west of Masterton. The town has a resident population of The town ...

Rail

Carterton lies on the

Wairarapa Line The Wairarapa Line is a secondary railway line in the south-east of the North Island of New Zealand. The line runs for , connects the capital city Wellington with the Palmerston North - Gisborne Line at Woodville, via Lower Hutt, Upper Hutt ...

, and is served by the

Wairarapa Connection The Wairarapa Connection is a New Zealand interurban commuter rail service along the Wairarapa Line between Masterton, the largest town in the Wairarapa, and Wellington. It is operated by Wellington suburban operator Transdev (with KiwiRail sub ...

operated by

KiwiRail KiwiRail Holdings Limited is a New Zealand state-owned enterprise responsible for rail operations in New Zealand, and operates inter-island ferries. Trading as KiwiRail and headquartered in Wellington, New Zealand, KiwiRail is the largest rail ...

and

Transdev Transdev, formerly Veolia Transdev, is a French-based international private-sector company which operates public transport. It has operations in 17 countries and territories as of November 2020. History The group was formed by the merger of V ...

on behalf of Metlink, connecting Carterton to Wellington. The train serves both

and

Matarawa railway station Matarawa railway station is a small single-platform railway station on the Wairarapa Line that serves the small rural community of Matarawa in the Wairarapa district of New Zealand. History This station opened on 1 November 1880, when th ...

southwest of the township.

Notable people

, world's first transgender mayor *Sir Bob Charles, golfer, first left-handed golfer to win a golf major (

The Open Championship The Open Championship, often referred to as The Open or the British Open, is the oldest golf tournament in the world, and one of the most prestigious. Founded in 1860, it was originally held annually at Prestwick Golf Club in Scotland. Later th ...

, 1963) *

Herbert Ernest Hart Brigadier General Sir Herbert Ernest Hart, (13 October 1882 – 5 March 1968) was an officer in the New Zealand Military Forces who served during the Second Boer War and the First World War. He later served as the Administrator of Western ...

, World War I commander, born Taratahi *

Madeleine Marie Slavick Madeleine Slavick is an American author and photographer whose work is notable for crossing cultural barriers.Rosie Milne, 31 Aug 2004, The TelegraphHong Kong's poets are crossing cultural barriers Accessed June 26, 2014, "...Madeleine Marie Sl ...

, writer and photographer *

Ron Mark Ron Stanley Mark (born 29 January 1954) is a New Zealand politician of the New Zealand First party, and former soldier, who served as Minister of Defence between October 2017 and November 2020. He served as mayor of Carterton from 2010 to 2014, ...

, politician and former mayor of Carterton *

Celia Manson Cecilia Evelyn Manson (; 24 August 1908 – 28 October 1987), known as Celia Manson, was a New Zealand writer, journalist and broadcaster. Many of her works were co-written with her husband Cecil Manson, and together they also laid the founda ...

, writer and journalist * Marion Tylee, artist *

Hamuera Tamahau Mahupuku Hamuera Tamahau Mahupuku (c.1842 – 14 January 1904) was a New Zealand tribal leader, runholder, assessor and newspaper proprietor. Of Māori descent, he identified with the Ngāti Kahungunu iwi. He was born in the Wairarapa The Wai ...

(c.1842 – 14 January 1904), a New Zealand tribal leader, runholder, assessor and newspaper proprietor from Longbush

Image gallery

File:Wairarapa Daily News (14375762072).jpg, Newspaper offices File:Wairarapa Electric Power Board Building.jpg, Wairarapa Electric Power Board building 1925 File:Wakelin's Flourmill.jpg, Wakelin's flour mill
NZHPT category 1 File:Middle Run, Carterton, Wairarapa (20720297926).jpg, Daffodils at Middle Run

References

* *

External links

Carterton District Council websiteThe Carterton Events CentreCarterton District Business Community WebsiteCarterton Farmers' Market websiteDestination Wairarapa tourism website for visitors
{{Cities and districts of New Zealand Wairarapa Carterton District Populated places in the Wellington Region